Period Western - Interest Check

Started by Chrystal, March 22, 2012, 03:32:17 PM

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Chrystal

Howdy Pardners!

Welcome to the interest check thread for what is set to be a rootin' tootin' rip-roarin' humdinger of a role-play. I've already invited some people in, but this is an open game.

The year is 1881. The setting is the Wild West. The story? Well that rather depends on how many people I get playing. But there are so many wonderful, tried and tested Western Pulp-Fiction stories available that I was simply planning to use one of them as a back-ground plot and allow a pretty much sandbox feel to the game. So, what that means is that if you all (or should that be 'Y'all'?) choose to go panning for gold in them thar hills and ignore the Indians that are burning the outlying ranches, then that is your choice and I will adapt to see which of you strike it rich, and whether you have a town left to come back to... ;)

Ah, but the plot I choose will hopefully be one that you all have input to, so when it gets going you are all interested in keeping at least mostly to it.

The setting is going to be in and/or around the fictional Western town of Deadstone (or possibly Tombwood). That said, I might just use a town I already created for a one-on-one roleplay, called Gator's Crossing, but if I use that town, then it's because I've picked a specific plot and you've all agreed to it.

We are going to have a saloon (to have brawls in), a bank (to rob), a Town Marshal's office and jail (to get thrown in after doing one or other of the above), a main street (for shoot-outs), a Boot Hill (for the loosers), out of town ranches, a stage coach station, in fact, everything a good old Western town should have. If I leave anything out, please let me know?

There is just one important thing: All player characters need to be on the same side, I'm afraid. There is a very good reason for this: PvP in freeform roleplay can get very messy, especially where firearms are concerned. Someone always ends up dead, and if that someone is your character, chances are you aren't going to be too happy about it...

There will be plenty of room for gun-play but the victims will be NPCs.

A few rules before we start:

The game will go in Human N/C. Non Consent applies to the character, NOT the player. You ALWAYS require a players consent before doing something to their character. (Note that if their character is begging yours to do something, that doesn't necessarily mean the player wants you to!)

Characters and Quick Draws: I'm sure everyone wants to be the fastest gun in the west, but not everyone will be. The character profile will have a "Draw speed" item.  You can specify anything from 0.4 seconds upwards, or put N/A if your character doesn't carry. If you put anything below 0.4 I will add one second to your speed. If I get too many fast guns I might just randomly generate a value to add. There will be ONE character with a draw speed below 0.4 seconds - GM's privilege! (I will allow certain exceptions to this. If you think you are an exception, PM me).

I will require people to "Tag" their posts with where they are and what they are doing. I will post some code you can use to do this with or you can use your own preferred format as long as it has all the required info. More detail later on this.

The character sheet:


[b]Player Name:[/b] Put your login name here

[float=right][img height=300 padding=10]Put the URL of the image you are using here[/img][/float]
[b]Name:[/b] The name of your character

[b]Nickname:[/b] If your character has a nickname or alias
[b]Gender:[/b] Might not be obvious from the picture
[b]Age:[/b] How old were they in 1881?
[b]Sexuality:[/b] Yes there were gays back then...!

[b]Occupation:[/b] What does he/she do for a living?

[b]Home:[/b] Do they live in town at the start of the story or are they passing through?

[b]Weapons:[/b] Please use Google. Any weapon invented after April 1881 I will ask you to change.

[b]Draw Speed:[/b] As mentioned above, anything from 5 seconds down to 0.4 seconds, or N/A.
[b]Accuracy:[/b] The range your character can hit someone at, with all their chosen weapons. Again, please use google. I will check!

[b]Equipment:[/b] What other items other than weapons does your character habitually carry around?

[b]Horse:[/b] Age, gender, colour and height, if applicable.

[b]Likes:[/b]
[b]Dislikes:[/b]
[b]Fears:[/b]
[b]Goals:[/b]

[b]Personality:[/b] What are they like?

[b]History:[/b] How did they come to be here?

[b]Other Info:[/b] If you have any.


Click the select link then copy and paste that into a PM, fill it in and send it to me for approval, please.

My ideas for plots:

1) Stagecoach. This will work if only four or five players are interested. A group of travellers on a stage coach come under attack from Indians, bandits, bandits disguised as Indians... You get the picture...

2) High Noon. Classic story of the marshal who wants to clean up the town and is up against a bunch of murdering thugs. The towns folk leave the marshal standing alone, but then slowly come to help.

3) Range War. Two opposing ranches fight a range war over the water supply that is on a third (much smaller) ranch.

4) Posse. The bank is robbed by two notorious criminals and a posse is sent to hunt them down.

5) Land Grab. (This is my favourite as it has the most scope). The biggest land-owner in the area, Thomas Gator, has got wind that the Railroad will be coming through, and that the Railroad company will be paying a lot of money for the land the tracks will be laid on. Unfortunately, the route doesn't cross the XG range....

Any other suggestions are welcome and I may just incorporate them into one of the above.

Player characters available:

(These are just some ideas. Please feel free to come up with your own)

Mayor

Saloon owner
Bar tender
Dance girls
Pianist

Blacksmith
Blacksmith's apprentice

Doctor

Hotel Owner
Receptionist
Maid

Bank Manager
Tellers

Diner owner & chef
Waitress

General Store Owner
Assistant

Church Pastor

Stable Owner
Stable hand

Barber

Butcher
Apprentice

Stage line agent
Stable hand
Drivers

Local ranchers and cow hands

Madame
Prostitutes

Undertaker

Wives and husbands to any and all the above (even the prostitutes if you like).

Drifters, gamblers, bums, old folks who sit chawing baccie on porches, etc....

NOTE: The town marshal is not listed as available, because he is a NPC who gets shot fairly early on, regardless of which plot is chosen. And yes I will be having my character take on the job. Again, GM's privilidge.

Post here if interested. If not, well thanks for reading....!




OOC Thread
Character Thread

Please check out my latest A/A post.
I would rather watch a movie then have dinner than have dinner then watch a movie!

JackWhite

Wanted to be the first to say that I'm interested

Chrystal

#2
Yay...

So, just so you know the sort of thing I'm expecting character wise, here's mine...

*EDIT* This is a SAMPLE character. I will not be playing a character



Player Name: Chrystal

Name: Nichola Stone

Nickname: Stoneface
Gender: F
Age: 23
Sexuality: Gay

Occupation: Drifter, Gambler, Gunslinger for hire

Home: None

Weapons: matched pair of Smith & Wesson Model 3 revolvers, Winchester model 1873 repeating rifle.

Draw Speed: 0.35 Seconds with right, 0.41 with left (GM's Privilege)
Accuracy: S&W 30 yards aimed, 10 yards drawn. Winchester 97 yards

Equipment: Twin gun belt, saddle with rifle holster, rope, saddlebags, bedroll, slicker

Horse: 3 year old palomino gelding called Clay

Likes:  Girls, food, whisky, poker, winning, food, money, keeping out of trouble, soft beds, hot baths.
Dislikes: Men, cardsharps, lawmen, bartenders who water the whisky, hard work, staying in one place too long.
Fears: Being with a group of men who find out she's a woman, her past catching up with her.
Goals:  To stay one jump ahead of the law, for now.

Personality: Nick Stone (as she usually prefers to be called) is a tomboy. She's tough and unyielding to all but her closest friends - and she has virtually none of them. She's a gambler, and not just with the cards. But at the same time, she's not mean. She has her own sense of right and wrong which may not tally with anyone else's but she is at least consistent.

History: Nicky Stone was raised on a small farm in Kentucky. Her father was killed during the Civil War and her mother wanted to marry her off to a local land-owner's son. Nicky didn't know much about life but she knew she found women more attractive than men, and she refused. When her fiance came for her, and tried to rape her, Nicky shot him with his own gun, stole his horse and rode west. Over time she has acquired a more masculine appearance, she has discovered a reasonable skill with her weapons, not over-fast but she can draw and shoot with both hands in just under half a second. (NB: The fastest guns are able to draw and shoot in around 0.2 second).

Other Info: Picture is actually Sharon Stone, from The Quick & The Dead. Not the original pic I was using. And the surname is pure coincidence!



PLEASE PM your characters to me rather than post them here. Thanks

Once I have approved the character, then for the time being you may post here.

Please check out my latest A/A post.
I would rather watch a movie then have dinner than have dinner then watch a movie!

SugarAndSpice

I'm looking forward to this :) Always quite liked the whole western setting.

PeacethatPowerbrings

#4
Player Name: PeacethatPowerbrings

Name: Victoria Jensen

Nickname: C (pronounced "see" from Gypsy, shortened)
Gender: F
Age: 24
Sexuality: Bisexual

Occupation: Prostitute

Home: Deadstone Saloon (upstairs)

Weapons: One Colt Single Action Army .45, a pair of 1866 Remington Derringers .41 and a 5'' long stiletto.

Draw Speed: SAA - 1.2 seconds, Derringer - 0.4 seconds - 2.0 seconds, depending on circumstances, and clothing.
Accuracy: SAA 50 yards aimed, 3 yards drawn, 5 yards in holster. Derringer 3 yards.

Equipment: Thigh-holster -SAA, pair of derringer holsters, stiletto sheath.

Horse: none.

Likes: Girls, Men, Baths, Guns, Pretty Things (gold, jewellery), Comfort.
Dislikes: Dirt, Common Criminals, Men who hate women, Men who treat women poorly.
Fears: Being scarred and losing her work, losing control, having to move on again.
Goals: Make enough money to settle down, have her own establishment (more of a dream).

Personality: Victoria is a woman who lives on her looks. She sells herself because its her most marketable commodity. She is naturally confident, sure of herself, and only does what she wants to. However, she is seen by different people in different ways, she tailors her attitude to her clients, sometimes confident and sexual, sometimes calm and seemingly innocent, depending on the client.

History: Victoria was the young daughter of a pair of European immigrants. She was born in Europe, though her parents died when she was young, after bringing her to America. Living in New Orleans with her aunt and uncle, she was bound either to be married up and out of poverty, or to sell her body, since her looks made the former the only option her guardians considered, and the latter the only one she felt suitable for. She chose the latter, before the time for match to be found, and she left to go west. She worked in saloons, or wherever she was allowed to, while she continued to travel. She became, as the result of a great many run-ins with men who wanted more than she was willing to give up, extremely capable at defending herself. She would use the colt single action army strapped to her thigh to protect herself, not drawing to fire, but firing down the line of her leg. Her derringers, and stiletto were gifts, from an older gentleman, who was a charming and appreciative customer. In most cases, she moved on because of an incident, either with the law, or with a customer. None of these have ended well for her attacker, but they sometimes have friends. Being quite tall, she stands out, and tends to attract more business than she'll ever need.


I am filled with recollections of lives I have not lived.

Chrystal

Please note that only characters I've approved can be posted here.

As soon as I get enough players I will create a character thread and post all approved characters there.

In the mean time, I drew a little map. I've called it "Gator's Crossing", because to be honest I rather like the name. I've set it between San Antonio and Houston, purely to have the roads lead somewhere, but the location is arbitrary. The town is to Texas what The Simpson's  Springfield is to the USA. It is everywhere and no-where.



Let me know what you think, and if your character lives in town feel free to pick a house.

Also I realised (after drawing it) that we need an undertaker, so I've edited that into the available roles.

Any roles not taken will be NPCs. NOTE: NPCs can be shot and killed by players and/or other NPCS.

Please check out my latest A/A post.
I would rather watch a movie then have dinner than have dinner then watch a movie!

NileGoddess

Hmmm, tempted, as I have a lot of sexy/slutty indian and cowgirl pictures, but I'm not entirely sure if you're looking to dip into that realm of smut with this story.

kobrakid92

This looks interesting. What would the role of Undertaker require?

SugarAndSpice

Love the map of the town Chrystal :D

Chrystal

Quote from: NileGoddess on March 23, 2012, 06:43:20 PM
Hmmm, tempted, as I have a lot of sexy/slutty indian and cowgirl pictures, but I'm not entirely sure if you're looking to dip into that realm of smut with this story.

Hi NG.

There's always room for smut in a story on E. If you want to play a squaw who hangs around the saloon or one of the prostitutes, please submit a character.

As for "slutty cowgirl pics" I think it depends on how slutty. Best thing to do is PM me the ones you are thinking of and I'll let you know what I think?

Quote from: kobrakid92 on March 23, 2012, 06:49:41 PM
This looks interesting. What would the role of Undertaker require?

Staying out of the way until the shooting stops, then measuring the bodies, making the coffins, putting the bodies in the coffins, and transporting them up to boot hill to be buried.

Quote from: SugarAndSpice on March 23, 2012, 06:57:01 PM
Love the map of the town Chrystal :D

Thanks :)

Please check out my latest A/A post.
I would rather watch a movie then have dinner than have dinner then watch a movie!

kobrakid92

Ok I was just wondering. Would there be a role for Bank Robber/Outlaw or is that going to be left to NPCs?

Chrystal

Quote from: kobrakid92 on March 23, 2012, 07:20:50 PM
Ok I was just wondering. Would there be a role for Bank Robber/Outlaw or is that going to be left to NPCs?

As I said in the opener, I want all the player characters "on the same side", for the reasons stated.

That said, and I've already mentioned this to JackWhite in a PM, I'm hoping this will end up being a "poacher-turned-gamekeeper" type story. If that phrase is unfamiliar, try "set a thief to catch a thief". In other words the real good guys are all going to be NPCs, as are the real bad guys. The player characters are going to be almost like the Magnificent Seven in a way - basically a bunch of misfits who end up on the same side fighting for something for their own reasons, but ultimately winning the day and earning the gratitude of the townsfolk.

So, to cut a long answer short, yes you can be an outlaw, provided you end up on the same side as the Marshal (me).

Yeah, worth pointing out that my character isn't exactly squeaky clean either!

Please check out my latest A/A post.
I would rather watch a movie then have dinner than have dinner then watch a movie!

Sabre

Is the 'Siege' RP shelved then?  I really wanted to see that take off. :/

Still, I think I can get into this.  Perhaps a doctor-barber, a pacifist type of character though secretly a dead-eye sharpshooter with a long rifle.

Chrystal

Quote from: Sabre on March 23, 2012, 07:33:53 PM
Is the 'Siege' RP shelved then?  I really wanted to see that take off. :/

Still, I think I can get into this.  Perhaps a doctor-barber, a pacifist type of character though secretly a dead-eye sharpshooter with a long rifle.

No-one posted to the interest thread after my last post. So yes, it's shelved.

A barber who does medicine or a doctor who cuts hair? I had merely put the two in the same building, but I see no reason why they can't be the same man. I was also secretly hoping someone would want to own a buffalo gun!

Please check out my latest A/A post.
I would rather watch a movie then have dinner than have dinner then watch a movie!

Sabre

If no one else really wants to be the town barber, I'd be fine being a barber-surgeon, though mostly a surgeon that people keep seeing for close shaves when not dragged from the saloon after a bar fight.

I had my heart seat on a Sharps M1878 for the sleek design.  How accurate would I be allowed to be if, say, my character was an army sharpshooter or frontier militiaman before coming to town?  700-800 yards sound okay?

Chrystal

Quote from: Sabre on March 23, 2012, 08:02:49 PM
If no one else really wants to be the town barber, I'd be fine being a barber-surgeon, though mostly a surgeon that people keep seeing for close shaves when not dragged from the saloon after a bar fight.

I had my heart seat on a Sharps M1878 for the sleek design.  How accurate would I be allowed to be if, say, my character was an army sharpshooter or frontier militiaman before coming to town?  700-800 yards sound okay?

Sounds good to me, hun. I assume you're meaning Confederate army? And of course *facepalm* the barber was originally the surgeon. Hence the barber's pole!

The main reason I think you should say he was in the Confederate army - in case you don't know, if you do then please ignore this - Well, if you think the animosity towards the North in the Deep South is bad now, imagine what it was like a hundred and fifty years ago when the wounds were still fresh?

And 700 - 800 yards sounds about right - about a third of a mile.

Please check out my latest A/A post.
I would rather watch a movie then have dinner than have dinner then watch a movie!

JackWhite

Was my character okay that I had in the other game?

Chrystal

Quote from: JackWhite on March 26, 2012, 01:14:29 AM
Was my character okay that I had in the other game?

Yep, he was fine. You just need to add the extra details.

One thing I've noticed is that most of the characters so far are somewhat villainous. This is fine, there is nothing wrong with it, I'm just wondering whether we should swap sides for the player characters?

What do people think?

So far I've got two prostitutes, a bank robber, two drifters, the promise of a bad-guy-turned-preacher and the promise of a barber-surgeon sharpshooter.

It's an interesting mix.

Also, I have been leaning towards the "Land-Grab" scenario, but I would like to know what people think of it, or if they have any better ideas.

The scenario I have in mind works like this:

Opening posts

All characters arrive in town or put in some sort of an appearance.

My opening post is going to have Nick Stone arrive in town just as the bank is being robbed. The Marshal attempts to stop the robbers and gets shot, and Stone reacts without thinking, guns down all three of the NPC bank robbers.

As she's just saved the bank, she's hailed as a hero, and offered the job of Marshal. She can hardly admit to the people that she was actually thinking of robbing the bank herself, and so she accepts!

And yes I will get all that in a single post!

Everyone else's openers need to revolve around that action some how. If you want your character to be one of the robbers, you need to tell me in advance because otherwise there will be no survivors. You are welcome to have your character arrive in town after the action I described, or have them be already there but in a different part of town, in which case they need make no reference to it. Do be aware that it's not a big town and the sound of the shots would carry, but this is probably a daily occurrence.
Character development

I will allow people a few posts each to interact with each other, develop their characters and establish relationships. For example, the doc might want to look at a bullet wound on one of the failed bank robbers, newly appointed Marshal Stone might want to find herself a deputy, the prostitutes might want to get themselves some trade from the drifters.

Room for some smut but I would prefer the game not devolve into a lot of separate one-on-ones...
Plot introduction

At some point during the above phase I will do a classic "Meanwhile, back on the ranch" post. This will almost certainly be in a separate thread, and will be Tom Gator of the GX ranch finding out that the Santa Fe Railroad is going to build a branch through Gators Crossing. In fact, the discovery will be flash-backed or written in the historical tense, so that it is clear that he already knows.

Gator will then set about plotting to take the land that the Railroad will be coming through. This will involve making offers to buy out the land owners - mostly smaller ranches and a few farms.
The plot hits town

The first of the smaller land-owners to sell up arrive in town - NPCs probably under my control but if anyone else wants to make one they are welcome to, just follow the lead of how I do mine. These NPCs will start arriving probably the day after the story starts, with similar tails of how Gator seems to be wanting to buy up land on the other side of town, and for their worthless patch of land it was too good an offer.
Things get nasty

Of course, someone refuses to leave, and the next thing you know they're hit by a gang of armed men and killed. Someone (the daughter, perhaps) survives to tell the tale. Marshal Stone figures things out and goes to see Gator. Demands to know what is going on. I've not quite decided which of several reactions Gator has - he might try all of them.

But from that point on, it's war, and Stone recruits all the other PCs to be on her side (somehow).

That's as much as I can reveal for now about how I see that particular plot developing.

Thoughts please?

Please check out my latest A/A post.
I would rather watch a movie then have dinner than have dinner then watch a movie!

SugarAndSpice

I like this Chrystal, it's different to other roleplays where you ve to try and character develop and react to the plot at the same time.

SugarAndSpice

Quick question: Will there be an order to post in? Or will it be a case of tagging where your character is/who with?

Chrystal

Good Question.

Having a set posting order can be very frustrating, I've found, especially when people drop out unexpectedly, or take a week's holiday. I also have found, in the past, that if two players are involved in a conversation, or robbing a bank together, or, who knows, maybe even engaging in something romantic like dinner for two.... (Oh alright, having sex). I have found that two players so occupied, will often not want to wait for a regular posting order.

Worse is when a group are together and one character makes a comment that should logically be addressed by the character who posted just before them...

So, as I suggested in my opener, I would like people to tag their posts with the character name, location, what they are doing, who they are with, and whom they expect to respond.

As I said, I will publish a block of code that will put the correct tags in one corner of your post, along with a miniaturised version of your character's picture.

Please check out my latest A/A post.
I would rather watch a movie then have dinner than have dinner then watch a movie!

PeacethatPowerbrings

Quote from: Chrystal on March 26, 2012, 03:57:30 AM
Thoughts please?

It all sounds great so far. Plot sounds like lots of fun.
I am filled with recollections of lives I have not lived.

rancorius

are you still looking for players?

Chrystal

Quote from: rancorius on March 27, 2012, 11:42:23 AM
are you still looking for players?

Yes, definitely.

So far I only have a handful.

On that note, I'm thinking of dividing characters up between "Townsfolk" and "Rangefolk". Basically anyone who lives in the town permanently, starts off in town and has a declared home in town, counts as "Townsfolk". Drifters, outlaws, farmers, ranchers, cowhands, gunslingers, itinerant preachers, Circuit Judges, gamblers, all count as "Rangefolk".

My reasoning behind this is to allow players to have one of each character type. Normally this division is between Dominant and Submissive, but in this particular case, while the towns folk may be more inclined to be submissive, they certainly don't have to be by any means.

Please check out my latest A/A post.
I would rather watch a movie then have dinner than have dinner then watch a movie!

Oneiros

#24
Very interested. I have a character already, I'll just have to write up a page for him\her.

Eta: I'm struggling between two characters, one being the church pastor/priest (might want to make him catholic), if no one else snatches up the priest character, is there a problem with me playing two characters?